Glacier Bay National Park

Visited: Jun 2018
Nearby town: Gustavus, AK (reached via plane or boat from Juneau, AK)

I have been lucky enough to see so many great natural wonders of our country. I suspected that I had seen most of what the USA has to offer...

...but then I went to Alaska...

It is superlative in every way. The biggest, the largest, the most remote, the most desolate wilderness paradise I have ever laid eyes upon. Massive magnificent mountains as far as the eye could see in every single direction. Their craggy peaks reaching the sky and gigantic cliff faces plunging into the cold, deep, blue ocean. Verdant forests that stretched seemingly to infinity. Impossibly high waterfalls, hundreds of them cascading down entire mountainsides. Incredible glaciers, gigantic rivers of ice that seemingly transform mountains into breathing, moving, living things. Wildlife everywhere. We saw otters, seals, humpback whales (I saw one breach in the distance, poor Tara had her head turned at the time and only saw the splash), killer whales, bears, bald eagles. We were clearly in their territory. A drop-dead gorgeous sunset that lasted forever: I finally gave up at 1:30 in the morning and the sun was still setting! The Land of the Midnight Sun indeed. Never have I been to a place where humans and our signs of civilization seem so tiny and insignificant.

If you have never been to Alaska, picture the most incredible mountain scenery you have ever seen...now multiply it by a hundred. That's not an exaggeration. Just one of those peaks would be the pinnacle of perfection in the lower 48. And the craziest thing of all, we only went to a small corner of the State! There is so much more to explore, and I can't wait to go back.

Alaska is truly the great and last frontier.

We took a Princess Cruise for our first trip to Alaska, a back-and-forth from Seattle with ports in Juneau, Skagway, Ketchikan, and Victoria (in British Columbia). Most of the time was cruising through the incredibly scenic Inside Passage, including a day cruising Icy Strait and Glacier Bay, which is protected in Glacier Bay National Park & Preserve.

Cruise ship is, by far, the most popular way to visit this Park. Just make sure to book with one that has Glacier Bay on the itinerary. Bear in mind that your ship will not dock at Gustavus, and you will not be able to explore the park by foot, it's entirely by cruise. Don't let that deter you. The alternative is to take a small seaplane or boat from Juneau to Gustavus. From there you can take small tour boats into the bay, or you can kayak, etc.

Because the cruise ship does not dock at Gustavus you cannot go to the Visitor Center. Not to worry, the Park Rangers bring the Visitor's Center on to the boat. Rangers will be on the deck during your stay to answer your questions and tell you about the Park. They'll also set up a gift shop on the boat. I'm OCD and always like to get a photo with the National Park entrance sign, the best we could do was the makeshift sign set up on the boat. 😉

The National Park protects the northernmost part of the Alaskan panhandle, and is home to 1,045 glaciers. Seven of which are tidewater glaciers, meaning they flow all the way to the bay/ocean. These glaciers have receded greatly since their initial discovery in 1794 by Joseph Whidbey. At that time, what is now Glacier Bay was one massive glacier that ended at the Icy Strait. Despite this, there are still a few glaciers in the park that are advancing, namely Johns Hopkins Glacier.

Our day started by cruising up the beautiful pristine bay.

the bay was littered with small icebergs

I liked this bald eagle perched on top of the iceberg. As we neared Russell Island, we saw a small family of bear way in the distance at the shoreline.

Just sit back and relax and enjoy the impressive scenery.

Most of the glaciers in the park are like this one, that start and end high up in the mountains. Eventually, we reach our first stop, Margerie Glacier.

A glacier is essentially a river of ice. A persistent body of dense ice that is constantly moving under its own weight. Margerie Glacier is 21 miles long, 1 mile wide, and at its terminus is 350 tall (one hundred of that is underwater). It is one of the most impressive and beautiful sights that Tara and I have seen in our National Parks. Our cruise ship (and I believe most cruise ships) will sit at the glacier for an extended period of time, and then turn around and sit at the mouth of the glacier again for an extended period of time, thereby ensuring that both sides of the boat get prime viewing. Behind the glacier rises impressive Mount Fairweather, at 15,300 ft the highest peak in British Columbia (the mountain lies right on the boundary line).

As you marvel at the glacier, keep your eyes peeled for calving. Calving is where massive blocks of ice break free from the face of the glacier and plunge into the ocean. We were lucky to witness some calving. We were also lucky to have a nice pleasant weather for our cruising day (there were only a few clouds) Honestly, don't attempt to capture the calving on video, you'll miss the pleasure of simply viewing the glacier and taking in all that nature has to offer you. But certainly take a few pics. 😊

Tara was able to capture the giant splash from a large chunk falling in

You'll also see the Grand Pacific Glacier. It's 25 miles long and nearly 2 miles wide at its terminus. However, it's nowhere near as photogenic as Margerie Glacier because it's not as tall and, thanks to all the rock debris it dredges up, makes it black in appearance and it looks like a big pile of dirt.

the mouth of Grand Pacific Glacier

another cruise ship comes up to take our place at Margerie Glacier

We then headed down the Johns Hopkins Inlet to see Johns Hopkins Glacier. Because this glacier is still advancing, many protections are in place, and no ship is allowed to get very close to its terminus. However, it is a very impressive sight. Johns Hopkins Glacier is 12 miles long and Mount Orville rises high above it.

As we headed out of the bay we got to see Lamplugh Glacier and Reid Glacier. We also got to see a bunch of sea lions chilling out on some icebergs.

Lamplugh Glacier is 8 miles long

Great Pacific Glacier from a distance

We loved our visit to Alaska, and Glacier Bay was absolutely the highlight of our cruise. If you've ever thought about doing an Alaskan cruise, don't hesitate. Do it! For more info, check out: https://www.nps.gov/glba/index.htm